The present invention relates to a system for converting handwritten input information into electronic data and a method thereof, and more particularly to a document taking-over system and method for delivering the handwritten input information as the electronic data of a predetermined format to a system that utilizes the data.
Generally, an OCR (Optical Character Recognition) apparatus is used to convert input information handwritten on a document or slip into electronic data in order to process the data in computers or the like. In the OCR apparatus, a scanner is used to read characters handwritten on a document and recognize the read characters to thereby prepare or produce the electronic data. Such an OCR apparatus is defective in that an optical scanner is used to read characters and accordingly a recognition rate of characters is reduced when the layout in the document is complicated.
As a handwritten information input apparatus that solves such a defect, there is an apparatus using an electronic pen. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,570,104B1 discloses a handwritten information input apparatus using an electronic pen which can read a special dot pattern which is printed on a document and can specify a position and store the read pattern. The electronic pen of U.S. Pat. No. 6,570,104B1 includes a light emitting diode disposed in a cylindrical body thereof and which irradiates the surface of the document having the special dot pattern printed thereon with light emitted from the light emitting diode and an optical sensor which detects light reflected from the surface of the document to thereby read the dot pattern printed on the surface of the document and store it in a memory of the body. The stored data is analyzed to convert input information handwritten on the document into electronic data. According to the apparatus described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,570,104B1, even if the contents of the document are printed by a complicated layout, only characters written thereon can be converted into electronic data exactly.
However, when it is considered that the apparatus described in U.S. Pat. No. 6,570,104B1 is utilized in cooperation with an existing system such as a business system, the electronic data inputted by the apparatus has no attribute information as to what kind of contents is indicated by individual data contained in the electronic data and accordingly the electronic data cannot be utilized as it is.